Courage Found
by Wishing-for-a-Wand
Summary: It's been a year since her experience in the Chamber of Secrets, but Ginny Weasley is still paying the price for her mistake. Her every dream, and even her waking moments, are haunted by the memory of the monster she found there. But maybe her new Defense teacher, some laughter, and a boggart can help her find her courage.


Courage Found

Ginny Weasley crept softly to her Defense professor's office. The door was slightly ajar, and light was peeking out around it. She listened a moment for sounds to indicate her teacher was in.

"I'm here," a voice from within called to her. "Come on in."

Peeping around the door, she could see Professor Lupin sitting at his desk looking as though he had been expecting her.

"How did you know I was there?" Ginny asked, puzzled. She had tried hard to be quiet and not disturb the professor from his work.

With a shrug, Professor Lupin rose from his chair. "Call it intuition," he told her as he perched on the edge of his desk. "What can I do for you, Ginny?" Lupin smiled warmly at his pupil, and she couldn't help but smile back.

Ginny stepped shyly into the room to meet her teacher. Her smile faded as she remembered the purpose of her visit. "Professor Snape sent me," she began. "There's a ... boggart? ... down in a cupboard in the dungeon. He wants you to get rid of it."

Lupin's smile diminished a little, but he still exuded the warmth and confidence Ginny found so comforting. Especially now, after she what she had seen in the dungeon. "A boggart, eh?" he asked. "I imagine they are rather fond of Professor Snape's classroom."

He stretched his long legs and placed his hands in his pockets. "Well, we don't want it in the castle any longer than necessary. Boggarts are nasty creatures."

"That they are," Ginny muttered. She still stood just inside the doorway concentrating on not shaking visibly.

She felt the flicker of her professor's eyes towards her, but he asked nothing and she told the same. "I'll go dispatch of this one now," he finished, straightening.

Ginny asked the question before she had really thought about it. "How do you get rid of one?"

Lupin smiled again and picked up his wand. "It's not too difficult, really. All you need is a few relatively common tools; a wand, knowledge of a certain spell, and, the most difficult to come by, a sense of humor."

"A sense of humor?"

"Mmhm, imperative for vanishing a boggart. Imperative for, in my professional and personal opinion, much of life."

Ginny thought about that. Coming from a family that included Fred and George, she knew firsthand the joys and trials of a sense of humor. She shuddered to think of the vile creature she had glimpsed in the dungeons, but vanishing one didn't sound too difficult. Ginny had a wand and with the twins around she ought to have a sense of humor. All she needed was that certain spell, something Professor Lupin could surely teach her.

Her expression must have revealed much of her private thoughts, because her teacher seemed fully aware of them. "Do you mind showing me where this boggart was, Ginny?" Lupin asked her.

She knew right were it was. The upright cupboard in the back left corner of the potions room, lying in wait for its next prey to approach in search of powdered tubers. But to see it again... Ginny didn't think she was strong enough.

But something akin to courage bubbled up inside of her as she realized she wouldn't be facing the boggart alone. She knew little about boggarts, but Ginny decided one certainly didn't stand a chance against Professor Lupin. "Alright," she agreed softly.

Ginny led him slowly down the corridors to the dungeons. The moment of courage had passed, and she was beginning to second guess her decision to return. Professor Lupin walked beside her, matching her pace. "Do you know what a boggart is, Ginny?" he asked her. With a shake of her head as confirmation of his suspicions, he continued to elaborate. "A boggart is a magical creature that feeds off of a person's worst fears, shifting to take the shape of what scares them most.

"They can be quite terrifying, but a boggart holds no real power. Whatever it presents itself as can do you no harm." Lupin paused in his explanation to meet her eyes. "Whatever you saw, Ginny, it cannot hurt you."

So Lupin knew she had seen the boggart. Not surprising as he seemed to know all sorts of things no one told him. But he didn't know what it had looked like. He didn't know what she had seen. And Ginny wasn't at all sure that it couldn't hurt her.

Even walking slowly, they had reached the dungeon. The potions room was deserted, with even its master having vacated its depths. Ginny stepped in quietly, still on the lookout for Snape. Seeing that they were alone, she pointed shakily to the cupboard shadowed in the back of the room. Lupin nodded slowly and made his way to it.

As he stooped to examine it, the cupboard gave a violent shake. Ginny, still several paces behind him, jumped back another meter.

Looking worriedly back to her, Lupin said, "It's all right, Ginny. This is definitely just a boggart." He stepped back to join her, explaining some more.

"Boggarts have to be finished off by laughter, so when they appear in their most terrifying form, it is our job to imagine them into a shape we find amusing." Ginny was intrigued, but still frightened. Lupin seemed aware of her feelings, and he came to stand beside her. "Let me show you."

He brandished his wand, and sent her a questioning glance. Ginny nodded shakily, terrified of seeing the boggart again, yet eager to see it vanished. Lupin directed his wand at the cabinet and gave it a swift flick.

Ginny hated the way the door creaked open; it seemed to move incredibly slowly, and each second drew her fear even closer to the surface. By the time it was fully open, she was shivering uncontrollably.

At last, the cupboard door was open and Ginny was practically hiding behind her professor. It was dark inside, and she couldn't make out a trace of the monster that had hid there last.

Lupin stepped protectively in front of his pupil, shielding her from whatever it was she'd seen. Slowly, a shining silver orb drifted from the depths of the cupboard. It revolved slowly in front of them, and Ginny found it mesmerizing. It glowed softly, and looked perplexingly familiar, but even so Ginny couldn't name it out of context. It was something terrifying to her teacher, and she could think of nothing that might scare him.

"Watch carefully now," Lupin told her, as he again raised his wand. He still stood firmly in front of her, but she peeked cautiously around to see his actions. With a flick of his wrist, Lupin cried, "Riddikulus!"

There was a sharp cracking pop, like the sound of an apparating wizard, and the shining orb changed. Instead of a glowing sphere, it appeared rough and yellowish. Suddenly there was a large brown mouse beside it. Ginny looked on in curiosity. The giant mouse opened its mouth and took a great bite out of the wheel.

The shining globe was now cheese! She understood and thought about her professor's choice. Had she been less frightened, Ginny might even have laughed.

Lupin himself let out a long, rolling laugh. He flourished his wand and the cheese wheel and mouse flew back into the cupboard. He turned back to her and gave an encouraging smile. Ginny returned a feeble smile of her own.

She was a bit unsure why the boggart was again back in the cupboard, but it looked as though Lupin was going to explain. "Ginny," he said slowly. "I've had my third year classes practice vanishing boggarts. It's a bit advanced, but they've all done an excellent job. You know, Ginny, I think you could handle a boggart."

She started at hearing that. Wasn't it clear from her panic that she couldn't handle a boggart? But her teacher continued, "Removing a boggart can be very liberating. Sometimes what we most need is the opportunity to laugh at what we're afraid of. If you would like to end this fear yourself, then I can help you to do it."

Ginny swallowed noisily. He was suggesting that she vanish the boggart, that she make it appear in the form she'd seen last. The very thought sent a fresh wave of shudders down her spine. Still, it was liberating? Could facing this fear really help her overcome it? Ginny wondered fleetingly if the nightmares could be stopped with laughter.

With a deep breath she met her professor's eyes. "I'd like to try."

Lupin's smile was back, in that genuine way that made her feel safe. "Let's begin then, shall we? The spell for vanishing a boggart is simple. One word: Riddikulus. Try saying it now."

"Riddikulus," Ginny said softly, rolling the sound around in her mouth, trying to grasp the spoken power of this one word.

"Very good," her teacher told her. "Now to the sense of humor we discussed. As you say this spell, you must find a way to transform your fear into something funny."

"Like you did with the cheese," she offered, wondering if he would reveal the original fear.

The Defense professor nodded. "Yes. And you can do the same. You remember what you saw, Ginny, it's likely that the boggart will appear to you like that again." He must have seen the fear flit across her face. "But it will be different this time, Ginny. I know you can vanish it."

Ginny thought back to the monster she'd seen. How was she supposed to turn that terror into something she could laugh at? She almost panicked anew at the thought of being approached by that particular demon. Finally, her stumbling mind landed on a strange idea. Maybe it would be possible.

"Okay, I'm ready," she lied, sure that she'd never be ready. Lupin nodded encouragingly. She couldn't understand his complete faith in her, but she didn't doubt that it was there. He raised his wand arm to open the cupboard, and she raised hers to confront the boggart.

The cabinet swung open just as slowly as before. Ginny felt her breathing and heartbeat quicken. It was coming.

At first all she glimpsed was darkness, but an instant later he was there. He crept slowly from the cupboard, coming to stand just in front of her. Ginny was no longer aware of her professor behind her; she was alone with the monster of her dreams.

He looked just the same as when she'd last seen him. His wavy black hair fell carelessly over one eye. His tall frame towered over her. His haughty eyes chilled her. His leering smirk told her what she most feared; that she would never escape him.

Boggart or not, Tom Riddle stood before her in all of his terrible glory. She was powerless to fight him.

"You can do this, Ginny." She heard Professor Lupin's voice as if from a great distance, but it was just enough to restore a measure of courage.

She gathered a shuddering breath and expelled it in a desperate cry of "Riddikulus!" For a heart stalling instant there was no effect, then Ginny's curse hit Tom Riddle square in the face.

The boggart was silent, but she could see the scream issue from his proud lips. Riddle's eyes widened with pain and surprise as he groped frantically at his nose. A great bat burst from beneath his fingers, followed by another and another as Riddle waved his arms in a fashion that could have been comical.

In fact, it was comical. It was downright funny. Ginny felt a chuckle escape her lips and felt almost as surprised as Riddle. It had been Fred and George who'd taught her that curse before coming to school. They'd have no fear of laughing outright at their handiwork.

So Ginny laughed, too. She'd actually managed to turn this nightmare into something funny! She laughed again as the bats began to circle Riddle's head. She was going to beat this boggart. She was going to beat Tom Riddle once and for all, and she was going to do it laughing.

Another laugh sounded behind her. Lupin stepped up to her side and their laughing gazes met. "Well done, Ginny!" he cried.

Their laughter was almost uncontrollable. Ginny had spent so many months crying in fear from that monster. Laughing now really did feel like the best way to beat him, to show him that she was free. Lupin was right; vanishing a boggart was liberating.

The boggart of Riddle grew more and more frenzied, waving off the bats that emerged even more numerously from his nose. Suddenly, and with a flash of light and a loud crack, Tom Riddle was gone again.

Ginny found herself panting from fear, effort, and hysterical laughter. "Well done, Ginny," Professor Lupin said again. "You did beautifully. And I daresay that boggart won't bother you again."

She was unsure if he meant the boggart she had destroyed or the fear that it had personified, but either way felt right. Ginny wasn't sure what it would take to really destroy Tom Riddle in her mind, but shooting him with a Bat-Bogey Hex and laughing in his face seemed like a good start.

"Thanks," she breathed heavily, sinking wearily into a seat.

Her professor pulled up a seat beside her. "That was Tom Riddle, wasn't it, Ginny?"

Ginny nodded shakily, even now not trusting herself to speak. She assumed that Lupin had been informed by other teachers of her experience in the Chamber last year. It was humiliating to have every adult in the school know your very worst mistake, but she didn't feel mortified by Professor Lupin. As always, he was a calm and logical presence, exuding warmth and trust.

"I thought that might have been him." His words were matter of fact, and he seemed not surprised or disturbed that his pupil's nightmares were of wizarding kind's most diabolical figure. "You're not alone in fearing him. Voldemort is famous for his ability to instill fear."

She winced at the sound of the forbidden name. Lupin noticed and looked slightly apologetic, but not enough so to stop using it. He laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "But, Ginny, he can be beaten. This was proven today by a second year girl and as it was proven years ago by a baby boy. You don't need to fear someone you can defeat."

Ginny thought once more of Tom Riddle with bats flying out of his nose. Yes, even he could be beaten. The fear still lingered, Ginny didn't know how much longer it would, but today with the help of Professor Lupin and a boggart, she'd taken the first step to defeating it for good.

She and her teacher stood to return to their respective duties. "Thank you," Ginny murmured. "I think I needed that."

Lupin smiled. "Fighting a boggart is liberating," he repeated. "And facing our fears is something we must each do in order to emerge victorious." With these parting words, he wished her a fine day and ambled off to aid another child.

Ginny wondered if her teacher knew just what he'd done for her. She imagined it was something she wasn't likely to ever forget; this lesson in fighting boggarts and facing fears. He'd helped her find courage she didn't know she'd had.


End file.
